 | ||
Died 21 May 1928, Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil | ||
Álvaro Freire de Villalba Alvim (16 April 1863 – 21 May 1928) was a Brazilian physician, pioneer in radiology and radiotherapy. He studied in France with Pierre and Marie Curie and performed the first radiograph in Brazil, which was on the xiphopagus case for Brazilian surgeon Eduardo Chapot Prévost.
Contents
Life and Times
Álvaro Alvim was born on 16 April 1863 in Vassouras, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, the son of Carlos Freire Alvim y Villalba and Mariana Amélia de Carvalho. He died from leukemia on 21 May 1928 in his home state of Rio de Janeiro.
Alvim graduated in 1887 with a degree in medicine from the Bahia School of Medicine. In 1896 he traveled to France and studied medical physics in the clinic of Marie Curie and Pierre Curie. While in Europe Alvim purchased X-ray equipment that would be installed in his clinic upon returning to Brazil. He was to establish clinics for electrotherapy, physiotherapy, radiotherapy and radiology in Rio de Janeiro. Alvim was the founder and director of clinics for: Assistance to Poor Children; Institute of Electricity; Electrology and Radiology Institute; and the Casa de la Cultura Laura Alvim.
Alvim married Laura Paglia Agostini Alvim, the daughter of Angelo Agostini, and the couple had 3 children: Mariana, Alvaro, and Laura. The Casa da Cultura Laura Alvim clinic was named in his daughter’s honor. The family lived in a newly established neighborhood in Ipanema, Rio de Janeiro.
Achievements
Clinics
Accolades and Honors
In 1963, the post office of Brazil, Brazil Post issued a commemorative postage stamp in his honor and declared Alvim as the "martyr of science".